Should game developers such as Miyamoto get more credit?
By Dave Parrack
Should game developers such as Shigeru Miyamoto get more credit than they currently do on game boxes and promotional posters? Surely Miyamoto is the Spielberg of the games world after all…
Games, movies, and television are coming together more and more as forms of entertainment on a level playing field. Certainly, big games such as Grand Theft Auto IV can compete with movies and television shows in terms of revenue and levels of publicity generated. But there’s one huge difference that still exists between the mediums, and that’s to do with the amount of credit given to the people behind the games.
The chances are that you’ll know who is the main person behind your favourite film, with the director and the actors involved usually getting high billing on the artwork, marketing campaigns, and opening credits. Big-time directors, such as Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino, in particular are always heavily associated with the promotion of their latest projects.
This is also true of television programmes, with most knowing that Gene Roddenberry created Star Trek, or that J.J. Abrams is the brains behind Lost. But games are different.
Yes, there are typically lots of people involved in the development of a modern video game, but there are usually a small number of people driving the project within that group. You won’t, however, see these people with their names up in lights on the back of your game’s box or on promotional posters. You’re much more likely to have to turn to the back of the manual for them to be listed at all.
David Jaffe, the man behind God Of War and heavily involved in the creation of the Twisted Metal series back in the day, argues the case for game developers to be given much more credit than they currently do on his blog (via 1P Start).
Jaffe understands that games publishers, as the ones bankrolling projects, are much more keen on the title and essence of a game selling it than the developer. And while that may be true for most, surely Miyamoto’s games all have a certain quality that warrant his name being much more heavily marketed as being the man behind a release?
I think we’re a long way from when games will be released with the main team behind it getting full credit on the front of the box, but it’s an interesting idea. As games become more associated with other, more established, forms of entertainment, maybe the people who are the main creative forces behind them will start getting the public credit they deserve.
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Tips N4G
August 24th, 2008
My god, what does it matter?
Does he want me to walk upto him in the street and blow him or something?
‘OMG! jooz made the last God of War!!! *slurp*’
What ever happened to being professional and being all you can be.
August 25th, 2008
it depends on the style of reporting…
I think all games are a group effort… while the initial idea came from one person… others usually contribute a lot to get it to the point where it goes…
We hail Miyamoto because he is presented as the poster-boy/man… just like people paid more attention to Jade Raymond rather than Assassins Creed…
GTA 4 started as one man’s idea… who is he?? does it matter?? did we care?? no… we didnt care because no one was talking about that one “creator”…
again it all depends on how you present the game and the people behind it…
August 25th, 2008
Shigeru Miyamoto makes garbage.
August 25th, 2008
Ivan,
At least Miyamoto-san USED to make video games. Have YOU made anything worthwhile lately?
-Arvis
August 25th, 2008
Maybe they should. I know someone who makes the Music in a EA Game and he gets nothing just his name in the credits. To EA he is just a guy that works for them.
August 26th, 2008
But then where do you draw the line
The person that creates the idea, the music, or that spends a ton of time coding the thing etc…
August 26th, 2008
and Ivan_PSP posts his token “IM IVAN AND IM RETARDED!” comment.
August 26th, 2008
I don’t think people need to be used in promotions to get the recognitition they deserve. Having your name in an ad for a game, or being known for your last release is not what a great developer deserves.
In 20 years, you won’t remember who was the mind behind Lost. You won’t remember who directed any random movie.
You’ll remember Spielberg and Miyamoto because of what they have done for their industry, for doing great things. That’s what they deserve, too, not to be a pop icon now. Think of Andy Warhol (strange I should use him as an example for this), you know who he is because he did something different, something that made people stop, not because he’s an icon now, but because what he did has put him in history.
Who who cares if Miyamoto or any other developer gets recognition now. Let them stand the test of time, and if they can’t, they aren’t worth it now, anyway.
August 26th, 2008
He should for ever be gotten by the world of gaming. Still garbage he should be kill for creating horrible games. Better yet burn alive while getting torture and beat up and cut him piece by piece while everyone watches having fun. Rip his teeth one by one and nail chop his legs and hands and than destroying every headquarters Nintendo has with RPGs. All sponsor by Sony and Microsoft… Damn I’m good serial killer psycho path LMFAO…